ALOR STAR: The Kubang Pasu Umno division has pledged full support for Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak to retain their positions as the party’s president and deputy president respectively.

Division chief, Datuk Mohd Johari Baharum, said the pledge was to ensure the tradition of continuity in the party’s leadership.

“We fully support whatever decision is taken by the party’s apex leadership on the matter,” he told reporters after chairing a meeting of Kedah’s Federal Action Council at Ampang Jajar here yesterday.

In Kluang, Sembrong Umno will nominate Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and Datuk Seri Mohd Najib Tun Razak to defend their president and deputy president’s posts respectively in Umno’s elections in December, said its head Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein.

He said the division’s stand was in line with the power transition plan between Abdullah and Najib that would take place in 2010.

“As I have said before, we (leaders of Umno) support the power transition process although others cannot be prevented from contesting.

“So it is for us (leaders) to go down to the ground to explain the leadership transition process, which I myself have done in Sembrong Umno,” he told reporters after officiating a Felda function in Felda Ulu Penggeli yesterday.

Earlier, Hishammudin, who is also Umno Youth chief and Education Minister, had opened Sembrong Umno branch meetings in Taman Seri Lambak here.

– Bernama